


It's One of the Hardest Things

by ThreexStepsXAhead



Category: Naruto
Genre: Action & Romance, F/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-04-23
Updated: 2016-05-05
Packaged: 2018-06-03 21:31:52
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 15,820
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6627271
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ThreexStepsXAhead/pseuds/ThreexStepsXAhead
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"She left Konoha. She left you. What makes you think anything she's said up to this point is the truth?" Kakashi never meant to fall in love with her. That was his first mistake. The second was letting her go. A woman of her particular skill set left a trail of broken hearts in her wake, and he was no exception. Seven years later, he could only hope that much had changed about her.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue

Prologue:  
“Set it down more carefully, Tanak.”

She glowered at the older woman, picking the porcelain teapot back up and placing it in the middle of the table slower than she had before. With the top, off she watched the dark green water slosh a bit, which earned a ‘tsk’ of disapproval. Clenching then unclenching her fists, she took a deep breath and cradled the pot back into her hands, lifting it just above the table and back towards her chest. She steadied her breathing, waiting for the water to still before trying once again to set it on the metal trivet of intersecting vines and leaves. Sweat formed at the edge of her hair, but she breathed a sigh of relief when the tea didn’t slosh on the inside.

“Much better.”

Tanak smiled, staring at her palms, “It’s difficult to control my chakra and steady the water…”

Chiasa patted her on the head, “You’re starting young. In a few years, this will be child’s play.”

“In a few years I’ll be even prettier.” Tanak tossed her already waist length ivory hair over her shoulder, “And then you can teach me about flirting-”

“You’re getting ahead of yourself.” She stared down at the little girl, no more than six years old, “And where did you get such an idea?”

Tanak shrugged, “There was a book in your drawer.”

“You shouldn’t snoop through other peoples’ belongings.” Chiasa sighed, “You can concern yourself with those techniques when you’re older.”

“How much older?”

“After puberty.”

“What if I’m good at it before that?”

Chiasa’s brow furrowed, lips pursed, “I hope for your sake that you aren’t.” Tanak grumbled something under her breath, trying to stomp off, but her guardian’s voice stopped her, “Not so fast. You need to practice your koto playing.”

“Why can’t I work on ninjutsu instead of that stupid instrument?” Tanak pouted.

Chiasa shook her head, “Weren’t you the one trying to get ahead in these studies?”

“What does playing an instrument have to do with being a kunoichi?” 

Chiasa walked across the room, picking the instrument up and lying it across her lap as she sat on the floor. Beckoning Tanak over, she slid the picks onto her thumb, index, and middle finger on her right hand, “What I am teaching you is an art that most kunoichi don’t study. There are very few of us who exist in this sphere of espionage.”

“So what exactly is this art?” 

Chiasa smiled while plucking a soft song across the koto, fingers sliding back and forth across the thirteen strings. The tune sounded sad, reminding Tanak of cherry blossoms slowly emptying from a tree in midwinter, petals lost in piles of snow, “It’s the art of beauty.” Chiasa’s fingers plucked higher notes, the beat skipping to sounds of spring awakening, wildflowers blowing in the breeze, birds harmonizing on tree branches, “As women we are told that our gender is a weakness. There are those of us who deny such a claim, and have turned that perceived weakness into a strength.”

Tanak was mesmerized by how smoothly her fingers flew across the koto, “How?”

“By using our bodies as our greatest weapons.” Chiasa stopped playing, “Whether men admit it, they are drawn to the hidden sexuality inside a woman. They want to be loved and admired, to be told they are the great conquerors of our bodies.” Tanak blushed a little, which made Chiasa laugh, “But that is our strength. Men are at their weakest during sex. A woman can glean information from a man lulled by her seductive nature.”

Tanak willingly took the koto as it was handed to her, setting the picks on her thumb, index, and middle finger. She started playing a simpler tune to warm up, “And I can become masterful at seduction?”

“If you are willing to learn.” Chiasa adjusted how her hands hovered over the instrument, “But the first step is learning to seduce without touching a man.” She smiled as Tanak’s fingers moved more freely across the strings, “Make him desire you as the beautiful, porcelain doll he has never been allowed to touch. But when he finally does…” Chiasa paused while watching Tanak close her eyes, letting herself become the music itself, the steady beating heart that waits in earnest for its first kiss, its first taste of affection, “…he will deny you nothing.”


	2. A Lie Can Be a Convenient Means to an End

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ~~~~ signals a flashblack

Breathing deeply, she closed her eyes to memorize the sounds. Birds singing to one another in romantic tunes, calling to end their loneliness, while insects rustled in the tall grasses, shaking the dew from their legs. Wind rustling through the trees, tossing her hair around her shoulders while the sun beat down on her face, glinting off her headband. She remembered it all again, his voice raspy as he cried out her name, demanding an explanation, demanding the truth. With his face a broken mosaic of heartbreak and anger, she turned away. 

But it did feel good to be back. 

The men at the front gates gave her a once over with leering eyes, either recognizing her name or admiring the subtle outline of her abdomen beneath her cropped mesh shirt. She gave them a wink when they assured her all was together, which left them blushing as they checked the ID cards of her team. Stepping into the village, she took in the sights and sounds that she escaped from. The candied chestnuts’ smell from Amaguriama tickled her nose, beautiful arrangements of florets from Yamanaka Flowers tucked behind the ears of passing girls, and glaring down at her the Hokages carved into the mountainside. 

She smiled, red lips stretching from cheek to cheek at the smell coming from her favorite ramen shop – Ramen Ichiraku. Stomach growling, she glanced over her shoulder to see her three genin hesitantly walking into Konohagakure.

“Tanak-sensei!” Taika ran up beside her, “I’m hungry!”

Tanak gestured to the restaurant in front of them, “I promise this will be your favorite place in the entire village.”

“That’s not saying much.” Tanak glanced to her left as another of her genin walked up, hiding her pale face beneath a parasol that cast a purple shadow on the ground. She wore a dissatisfied expression as she looked at where her sensei was suggesting they eat, “Is there nowhere else to eat?”

“You’re just spoiled, Lyoko,” Taika retorted.

“Round up Tauro and we can grab lunch.”

Tanak looked around, laughing with a shake of her head when she saw her last genin using his effortless charm to send passing kunoichi off with a giggle and a blush. She stood with her hands on her hips while he continued chasing after any pretty girl that noticed him. When he saw his sensei glaring at him in agitation, he apologetically smiled and ran over to them.

“Tanak- sensei, you failed to mention that Konoha littered the streets with beautiful women,” he mused.

“I didn’t realize a boy of thirteen would concern himself with girls.” She flicked him behind the ear, “But we aren’t here for you to find a date.”

Tauro shrugged, “I figured it would help pass the time before this chūnin exam.”

“You’re clearly not meant to rise above the genin rank…” Lyoko drawled.

“What did you say?!”

Tanak tuned out their little spat as Taika jumped in to play mediator. The air was thick with memories, hands from the past encompassing her waist, crawling to her neck. She sighed wistfully, closing her eyes while fighting against the sensation of coarse lips prickling her shoulders. She thought by now she’d pushed those memories so far from her mind that she could forget them, but Konoha threatened to unleash all of them onto her. Hands clenching into fists, a shiver ripped through her until she opened her eyes.  
“Tanak?”

Seven years hadn’t changed him much, if at all. He still insisted on covering his face, not that she minded. She used to have such pride in being the only one who knew what was underneath. He hardly seemed a day older, though dressed in looser clothing with his flak jacket over top. She couldn’t help wondering if he was as sculpted as he used to be, but shook away the thought of seeing him naked. That couldn’t have changed too much… The look he gave her, dumbfounded and livid, made her heart sink, as if he needed to touch her to know she was real, though punching her would have sufficed. 

Just like the good old days.

Lips parting in a cheeky smile as if she could taunt him with the gesture, she set her hands on her hips, “Well, well, well…If it isn’t Hatake Kakashi.” She twirled a strand of long, ivory white hair around her fingers, “Did you miss me?”

She was surprised he didn’t snap at that, his hands clenching and unclenching in fists while he breathed deeply to regain control over himself. But she could feel the tension in the air, just like when she left that day. He instead gave her a once over, slowly taking in the accentuated curve of her figure revealed beneath tight black pants and a mesh top. He forced himself to smile, “You look good.”

Subtle as usual. She wrinkled her nose, unimpressed with the compliment. Not that she expected him to fall to his knees and worship her, but she would have at least expected him to admit he had been waiting for her to return. Or maybe those battle scars went deeper than she realized? She stepped a little closer to him, forcing her smile back onto her face, “You’ve hardly changed.” She pretended to study him as she circled around, tapping her chin in thought, “Though admittedly your uniform is a bit drab.”

“Some of us choose more practical attire.” She caught his lingering eye on her bosom, which made her scowl, “Though I suppose your reputation precedes you.”

She bit her tongue to keep from lashing out at him. Laughing to brush off the insult, she shrugged while walking over to where her genin stood with confused expressions, “My body is a weapon regardless of how I choose to dress it.”

“A weapon in more than one way…” Flashing a furrowed browed glance at him, she wasn’t sure she heard him correctly. There was no point in trying to hide the blush in her cheeks as she watched him jam his hands into his pockets while staring at the ninja band she wore across her forehead, “When did you become a sensei in Amegakure?”

She waved her hand dismissively, “I do believe we’re being quite rude!” Her team gave her uneasy stares, “We can reminisce later.” She pushed her genin in front of herself, “Meet Oshiro Tauro, Miyata Taika, and Saito Lyoko. Team 14 from Amegakure.”

He seemed less than impressed with her deflection of his question but chose to follow suit, “Haruno Sakura, Uzumaki Naruto, and Uchiha Sasuke. Team 7 from Konohagakure.”

Tanak stared at the black haired boy, a brooding, but handsome genin that reminded her of Kakashi. His eyes were most interesting, shrouded by loneliness and grief, but burning with hatred and vengeance, “I’m sure they’re a formidable team having been trained by you.”

“You’re not one for genuine flattery.” 

She could hear it in his voice, that mocking tone behind his amused expression. She rolled her eyes, “I said formidable. That doesn’t mean they stack up against my team.”  
Taika sprinted forward, intercepting the punch aimed for her sensei from the blonde haired boy, taking his arm and flipping him over her back. Tanak tried to hide her laughter, but was bellowing at Kakashi’s wide eyed gaze. Though a bit disappointed that Taika showcased her speed, there were still two on her team with unknown abilities.

“Who do you think you are?!” Naruto shouted while picking himself off the ground and pointing at Tanak.

She grinned, eyes flickering gleefully, “It’s a long list…”

“Team 7. Meet Kōsetsu Tanak.” Kakashi paused, contemplating how to describe her in a few words other than conniving, traitor, and bitch, “Ex-ANBU squad member, ex-Konoha jōnin, ex-“

“Girlfriend?” Sakura squeaked.

Tanak’s cheeks turned bright red and she quickly turned her back in hopes no one noticed. Kakashi cleared his throat several times, his cool demeanor flushed from his face. They caught each other’s gaze, and for a moment she saw a flicker of that hunger for her that used to send them tumbling over one another. He shook his head while regaining his composure, “Ex-confidant to the Hokage.”

“That’s one way to describe me.” Tanak rolled her eyes with a dramatic flourish, huffing, “Suppose I should just tell him myself.” She held her hand out as a truce, “I am Kōsetsu Tanak. Sensei to Team 14 of Amegakure.”

Naruto just stared at her hand, crossing his arms over his chest, “You don’t look like much.”

Tanak smirked, winking at him, “Tits and an ass can be misleading.” She patted him on the head before gesturing with her chin for her team to follow her, “Loved catching up, Kakashi!”

Once out of earshot, Tanak breathed a sigh of relief and slumped into the nearest seat at the ramen shop. She was midway through ordering food when her team surrounded her.

“Could there have been any more sexual tension between you two?” Tauro chirped, bursting from the seams with amusement.

“You weren’t just comrades were you?” Taika giggled.  
Tanak continued to ignore them, ordering her ramen and shoving as many noodles into her mouth at once to avoid answering. She nearly choked trying to swallow all of it, but it was better than admitting anything. 

“Come on, Tanak-sensei!” Tauro was growing impatient, “It’s obvious you two had a thing.”

Lyoko rolled her eyes, stealing the bowl of ramen that Tauro had just ordered, “Don’t be such a child. Calling it a ‘thing’ sounds juvenile.”

Tauro growled in agitation, but was distracted as another bowl of ramen was placed in front of him, “Well, she’s not going to tell us what it actually was.”

Tanak slammed her hand on the table, silencing them with an icy glare that made them shiver, “It was a childhood infatuation that turned into nothing. Happy now?”

Lyoko stared at her, not buying her sensei’s remark, but deciding not to press her about it. Pressing her palms together, she said a quiet prayer before picking up her chopsticks and venturing to take a bite from her ramen. She glanced to her left to watch Tauro slurp every noodle with a smile that could split his cheeks. Swallowing slowly, she admitted to herself that it wasn’t as bad as she expected. As she reduced her meal to the chicken broth, she lifted the bowl to her lips and slowly drank the warm liquid, casting glances at Tanak, who was tapping her chopsticks on the edge of the table while staring off to the left. 

. . . .

Konohagakure was the last place he expected to see her. He’d convinced himself that she was gone from his life, and he stopped thinking about her. Well, that wasn’t entirely true, but he busied himself with his team of genin once he was dismissed as an ANBU squad leader. That kept the memories at bay. It irritated him to know she was still beautiful and much more aware of that, and he could only imagine how often she used that to her advantage. He used to have pride in being the one to see her face in the mornings, but just the thought of her brought his blood to boil. 

And all she could say to him was “Did you miss me”? What did she think he was doing when she turned her back on him? When she disappeared for seven years? She made it hard to forget her. Showing up in Konoha with a different headband and a team of genin, he began to question if it was even the same woman. 

“Who’d have known Kakashi-sensei was a babe-magnet?” Naruto said, nudging Sakura, “That lady was a fox-”

“There’s got to be more to it than that.” Sakura made sure Kakashi was out of earshot, “There was so much tension between them, but Kakashi-sensei looked a little sad…”

Naruto’s brow furrowed, “What do you mean?”

“It was when he first saw her.” Sasuke kept his voice lowered, interrupting their conversation, “Almost like he didn’t believe it.”

“I wonder if she broke his heart,” Sakura muttered.

Naruto shook his head, “There’s no way! Kakashi-sensei isn’t soft!”

Sakura smacked him upside the head, “Men fall in love too, you idiot!”

“There’s probably more to it than just heartbreak…” Sasuke mumbled, though his teammates weren’t listening.

“There’s one way to find out.” Sakura yelled, “Kakashi-sensei!” She skipped up alongside him, sheepishly smiling, “That woman we met. She’s not just an old comrade is she?”

He mused to himself for a moment, thinking through his response, “Not exactly…”

“That’s so romantic!” Sakura held her hands against her heart, “A forbidden love between shinobi from different villages, reunited after once fighting beside each other in their youth-”

“You’re getting ahead of yourself.” Kakashi cut her off with a laugh, “It wasn’t anything that dramatic. She once lived here and then she left.”

“That’s all you’re going to tell us?” Naruto hung his head in disappointment, “But there was so much tension!”

“But not for the reason you think.” 

Kakashi decided against telling her anything else. He still needed more information on how she managed to gain residency in Amegakure. Though he had a hunch about it, he found that thought only made him angrier at her. Waving a goodbye to his team with instructions to make their decision about the chūnin exam, he ascended to the roofs of Konoha, perching so he could overlook the village. He needed to find the Hokage and ask about a course of action. Tanak was an A-Rank shinobi and by all technicalities a missing-nin, but he had made the mistake of not finding her when she left.

~~~~  
Sitting back on his legs, he tried ignoring his throbbing ribcage where he was sure he had broken something and the oozing wound on his shoulder where she had cut down almost to bone. He focused on trying to stay upright before the Hokage’s desk, but every muscle was shaking from exhaustion. His head pounded as he tried to piece together everything that had happened. He was still in disbelief that nothing he said to her, no confession, no apology convinced her to stay. 

She had taken so much from him. Every punch that connected to his jaw bruised his pride. Every knife cutting through skin and muscle severed his emotions. Every cruel word stripped his belief that he could make her stay. Head bowed before the Hokage, he couldn’t even find the energy to cry. He just stared absently at the floor, awaiting instruction or questions or comfort.

“Where is she headed?”

He clenched his hands into fists, resting them on his thighs in an effort to hold himself together as his shaking body threatened to send him face first into the floor, “I don’t know.”

“Why did she leave?”

He breathed in deeply, trying to control his erratic heartbeat, “I don’t know.”

“What does she intend to do-?”

“I don’t know!” His voice broke, and he quickly pursed his lips while shaking his head. He was still trying to grasp that she left, “She wouldn’t tell me anything.”

The Sandaime Hokage shook his head, sighing heavily while peering at him from his desk. He wanted nothing more than to stop the cycle of grief that kept following him, “She’s a dangerous shinobi. With her intentions unclear, we will need to track her down-”

“Please, no!” Kakashi struggled to his feet, swaying unsteadily while clutching his shoulder, blood, wet and warm, seeping between his fingers, “I know Tanak, she doesn’t have any designs against Konoha.”

“How can you be certain of that?” Hiruzen stared at him with compassion in his eyes, knowing full well the degree in which Kakashi knew Tanak. He could feel the pain in the young man radiate through the room, the anger in his eyes begging for an answer that didn’t mean killing her, “She left Konoha. She left you. What makes you think anything she’s said up to this point is the truth?”

Kakashi could feel them burning in his eyes, tears pushing at the corners until he was forced to turn around. Wiping them away furiously, he sniffled a couple times while her words stung his ears. He didn’t want to believe what she said hours ago, her denouncement of any form of affection between them. It was only an act to make leaving easier, but it all came crashing down on his shoulders. Maybe she did mean it, maybe that was her way of telling him she was about to do something she would regret? He glanced over his shoulder, “If you want to track her down, then I request you let me do it. There’s no one in Konoha who knows her better.”

“But the order I give may not be one you would be willing to carry out.” Hiruzen folded his fingers together in thought, “If she won’t return willingly to Konoha to face trial, then she must be eliminated.”

Kakashi nodded his head, “Give me the chance to speak to her.”

“What closure would that give you?”

Starting to walk towards the door, a faint smile crept onto his lips, “I’ll just know if she meant it all.”

Hiruzen chuckled, “And if she did?”

“Then I will be the one to kill her.”

At the time, he thought he had searched for her with every skill he possessed, but perhaps he was hesitant in finding all the answers. Maybe somewhere in his youth, he didn’t want to carry out his promise to kill her? He just wanted to believe she left with no malicious plans against Konoha. But to see her again, affiliated with another village, made him worry that he had overlooked something in her.   
~~~~

Grimacing, he decided to visit the Hokage and ask for a course of action. She had never made a move against Konoha, and he wondered if she was still considered in the Bingo Books. But as he started moving across the rooftops, he saw something below. Stopping, he stifled a laugh at the woman with long, ivory hair that glimmered like a polished pearl sitting on a cloth of silk. He had to admit, he liked the color pink on her, but only the soft pink that reminded him of cherry blossoms in the winter. As she drew a parasol above her head, he figured the Hokage could wait while he followed her.


	3. Rust from the Blade

She glanced over her shoulder once more as she turned down the road. Closing her parasol, she let the setting sun wash over her face, swirls of purple, orange, and yellow painting the sky, illuminating her silk kimono. Down the road, she saw the farthest house on the left, and began making her way towards it. She remembered the slow walk she every time she came back from a day at the academy or from a mission. She was never in a rush to walk into the house because no matter how hard she tried to convince herself otherwise, Konohagakure wasn’t home.

Taking each step to the genkan carefully, she couldn’t help smiling at the same doormat that she’d stomped her feet on for almost fifteen years. The brown and pink color had faded to dismal near grey shades, the image of a cherry blossom tree almost gone. She shuffled her feet on it, out of habit, before knocking on the wooden frame of the sliding door. She waited while glancing left and right to see if anyone was moving from inside. She was startled by the paper screen of the door crunching as it opened.

“Can I help you?”

Tanak’s brow furrowed as she stared at the girl in front of her. Short brown hair, beady green eyes, and an unsure smile. Offering her a bow of her head as a greeting, she leaned her parasol against the side of the house, “My name is Tanak. I used to live here with the old-”

“Who’s at the door, Michiko-chan?!” 

Tanak covered her mouth to stifle her laughter. Stepping inside the house as Michiko disappeared into the living room, she slid the door closed behind herself and removed her sandals, “Forgotten me already, you old hag?!”

“You’re still a little sass mouth brat!” Tanak could hear her cackling from the other room as she rounded the corner. But her smile left her when she saw that old woman sitting on a cushion on the floor with a cloth tied around her eyes, “Your manners are worse than when you left!” The old woman gestured with her bamboo cane for Tanak to sit down across from her, “But it’s good to see you.”

“Near as I can tell, you can’t see anything, Chiasa-san.” Sitting down on a red cushion, she reached for the porcelain teapot on the table, “When did that happen?”

She began pouring herself a cup until the bamboo cane came crashing down on her head, ringing her skull. She nearly broke the teapot as she let it go, bringing her hands to her hairline to see if any blood was there. Glaring at the wrinkled woman, she snapped, “What was that for?!”

“Forgetting your manners with your elders!” Chiasa clicked her tongue until Tanak grudgingly poured her a cup and slid it over to her. Taking one of Chiasa’s hands that felt like worn leather beneath hers, Tanak guided her to the warm cup, “That’s much better, Shinju.”

Seven years away and the hag still called her by that name. Whether she meant it to or not, it made Tanak feel beautiful, soft and young, untouched and loved. 

“Are you going to tell me how you went blind?” Tanak mumbled while bringing her own teacup to her lips.

“I’m old! Or did you fail to notice?” Tanak rolled her eyes as the old woman cackled with laughter, “My sight started deteriorating around the time you left. I suppose the gods decided I didn’t need it anymore. Didn’t have you to keep an eye on!”

Tanak circled her finger around the rim of her teacup, watching Michiko exit the room and head into the kitchen, “So they’ve assigned a medical-nin to take care of you?”

“It would have been your job if you hadn’t run away.” Chiasa shakily set her cup onto the table, “So tell me. What have you done in seven years?”

“Explored the countryside.” Tanak wasn’t sure how much she wanted to tell her, “I needed closure. I wanted to make a name for myself like I did in Konoha.” She gripped her teacup tighter in her hands, “But one mistake and they disowned me.”

The old woman smacked her lips together, “Killing is a beautiful art, but what you did was a massacre-”

“It wasn’t that many people.” She paused while trying to think of the number from that night, but it made her stomach drop. Perhaps she had gotten out of control? Scowling into her next sip of tea, she remembered standing in front of the Hokage, the elected officials, and the ANBU members of her squadron while her crime was read out. A couple of her teammates defended her, but it was Kakashi’s silence that stung more than her punishment. He leaned against the wall with his eyes on the floor, an unspoken disappointment lingering on his face. She pushed his memory to the back of her mind to keep herself from crying, “I chose to leave. I managed to get citizenship in Amegakure, though I lived under constant surveillance for months. And I’m back in Konoha with a team of genin entering the chūnin exam.”

“A sensei, huh?” Chiasa turned her head as Michiko came back in with a tray of daifuku that’s smell caught her attention, “I didn’t take you for one to tolerate children.” 

Tanak popped one of the pink colored mochi into her mouth, chewing quickly so she could reply, “I actually enjoy working with them. I could bring them to meet you if you weren’t so unpleasant.”

“It’s the closest I’d get to grandchildren from you!” Tanak buried her face in her hands while the hag’s laughter screeched in her ears, but she was distracted as Chiasa began coughing violently. Her chest heaved and she reeled in her seat until Michiko caught her and brought a handkerchief to her mouth. Spotting the slightest bit of blood, Tanak chose to remain quiet as the old woman collected herself. Face turned to Tanak’s, she began speaking in a raspier voice, “Had you stayed with that young man you would be plump with a child by now.”

Tanak rolled her eyes, “We weren’t that serious-”

“Cut the bullshit.” Tanak sat up straighter, reminded of the other hundred times she was told that from her matronly guardian. Chiasa shooed away Michiko’s hand as she searched the table for her teacup, finding it and taking a quick sip to subdue an oncoming cough, “That boy was smitten with you.”

“As were most the boys in this village…” Tanak drawled.

Chiasa smacked her on the head again with her cane, prompting another how of pain, “If you’ve hurt that boy, I’ll beat you black and blue!”

“You don’t know anything!” Tanak slammed her hand on the table, tea sloshing over the side of her cup, “We fooled around as anyone our age would. It didn’t mean anything.”

She pursed her lips, brow furrowing as she thought about how protective he had become, intervening during missions when he assumed she was in trouble. She’d argue with him about his overbearing concern for her, and he’d remark that she didn’t care about her team. Or anyone for that matter. That argument would continue until they were shouting about their feelings for each other. And it all would end with a furious clash of lips to shut each other up, hands tearing at clothes, bodies pinning against the other in a battle of dominance. And when she’d wake up in the morning, she’d find herself content that he was soundly asleep beside her. 

“Kakashi-san tried to convince you not to leave.” Chiasa sighed, sensing Tanak’s silent confirmation, “Is it satisfying to know you can break hearts that easily?”

Tanak wiped away the tear that ran down her cheek, thankful the old woman was blind, “It’s a choice I have to live with. Nothing I can do about it now.”

“Except swallow your pride and apologize.” 

“We’re better off hating each other.” Tanak rose to her feet in a fluid motion with her kimono catching the remaining light coming in from the sunset. She bowed to Chiasa, flushed with all the memories of this place being her home and being raised by a callous, but wise woman, “I’m not ready to swallow my pride just yet, but I thank you for your advice, Chiasa-san.”

“There’s a heart somewhere in your chest.” Chiasa’s face turned up to Tanak as if she were looking through her, “Try thawing it out sometime.”

Closing the sliding door behind herself, she picked up her parasol and opened it, hiding her tear stained face as she walked. She hated that the old woman still had the ability to make her feel so guilty, to make her cry over something she had finally reconciled with. 

Wiping away what she hoped were the last of her tears with the back of her hand, she stopped walking down the empty market streets. She released a kunai from her sleeve into her palm, glancing over her shoulder. She dropped her parasol to her side while listening to the footsteps behind her. Her arm sweeping out, she grinned as her wrist was caught by a gloved hand.

“How long have you been following me?”

“Not very long.” Kakashi twisted her wrist until she dropped the kunai between them. He gave her a little push aside before picking the kunai up, “Hostile as usual.”

She grinned, reaching across him to take her knife back, “I do believe you were the one who always reminded me not to let my guard down.”

He stretched his arm out as she made a grab for the kunai, “I see you’ve taken that to heart.”

She pressed herself up against his side while dragging her fingers along his shoulder and across his chest. Amused that he seemed interested, a curious look crossing his face, she slid her fingertips down his abdomen, tugging at the loose material of his shirt, just enough to reveal skin. She felt goosebumps following in her wake as she gently brushed over the band of his pants. Catching her mischievous stare, he brought the kunai to her neck.

“Still don’t trust me?” she mused, red lips curling into a wicked grin.

“I learned the hard way not to fall for pretty smiles and batted eyelashes.” 

Tanak leaned closer, lips prickling against his ear, her neck straining beneath the tip of the kunai, “But here you are again.” She didn’t grimace as a tiny cut opened the skin under her chin, a thin trail of blood sliding down her fair skin, “We really should try meeting under different circumstances.”

“But the hostility is nostalgic.” 

Kakashi stepped back and turned the kunai around, offering the hilt to her. She took it and tucked it back into the arm band beneath her flowing sleeve. As she began walking down the road, he strolled up alongside her with his hands in his pockets. 

She pretended to not notice him, something she did when they were at the academy to make him try harder to impress her. She had known he was skilled, but could never give him the satisfaction of praising him. Parasol opened and held over her face, she obscured her features further in the onset of the night sky.

“You look pretty in that shade of pink,” Kakashi mumbled.

Tanak shook her head with a laugh, “Compliments are useless.”

“I think that’s a blush on your cheeks.” Just the roll of her eyes frustrated him, and he grabbed her shoulder to stop her in the middle of the street, “Why can’t you take a compliment?”

“Because it’s not going to change anything between us.”

“Who said I wanted to change things?” He scoffed, “You’re just a brat. Same as you were seven years ago.”

She waved him off, turning on her heel to continue towards the house she was lodged in for the duration of the chūnin exam, “I’m not in the mood for one of your lectures regarding my attitude.” She cast him a glare from over her shoulder, “I’ve done just fine on my own.”

“It’s been that easy for you?” Kakashi clenched his hands into fists, trying to keep his temper at bay. She still had that way about her that set him off, “Not once did you think about what it did to me?”

Closing her parasol, she wheeled on him and swung it as quickly as she could, missing his head by inches, “I don’t see you groveling for answers! You’ve moved on just fine since I left!”

“This was your problem to begin with!” He caught her next attack, drawing a kunai as he wrapped an arm around her shoulders to pull her against his chest. Blade tip digging into her throat, feeling how rigid her body went in his hold, he caught himself inhaling that familiar scent of cherry blossoms and honey on her skin. His grip loosened, but not enough to let her escape, “You always wanted me begging and desperate. But I could never trust you enough to be that open with you.”

Sensing his guard relaxed, she elbowed him in the ribcage. As he released her to recoil from the hit, she stumbled further away from him while furiously adjusting her kimono that had fallen open in their scuffle. She heard him laugh, which made her face flush red, “What’s so funny?!”

“You feigning modesty.” Kakashi sighed, “You always knew you were beautiful. And it distracted me from seeing how ugly you were underneath.”

She could feel tears in her eyes, hot and salty, stinging as they tried to force her to cry. Turning her gaze to his, she iced over every sprouting emotion and allowed a smirk to cross her lips, “You were just my first victim. Had to test my sex appeal on some gullible fool.”

He wanted to kiss that smirk off her lips and shut up her vicious mouth, wanted to grab her in the middle of the street and suffocate her in his arms, he wanted to remind her that he’d fallen for her once, and she was about to make him do it all over again. But as he crossed the distance between them, taking hold of her arm to drag her against himself as every muscle in his body wanted to, the door to the nearest house opened and Team 14 from Amegakure ran out while settling into their battle formation, dressed in their pajamas. 

“Are you alright, Tanak-sensei?!” Taika yelled, fists held out in front of herself.

Tauro slammed the end of his staff into the ground, “What’s he doing following you?” 

“Relax, you two.” Lyoko sheathed her laitō blade back into the handle of her parasol, assessing how close her sensei was to Kakashi, “I don’t think she’s in any unwanted danger.”

Her brow furrowed at the realization that she and Kakashi were a breath away from each other all of the sudden, close enough that she would have bumped into him if she stepped. She stared up at him, her heart catching in her throat to see the softness in his expression, the same one that had begged her not to leave. Hand pressed to his chest, she lightly pushed him backward to get him to release her, “Goodnight, Kakashi.”

Ushering her defensive genin into the house, she offered him no further words or gestures or glances as she disappeared through the sliding doors. 

Alone in the middle of the street, Kakashi watched the lights in the back of the house turn on, illuminating the paper screens. He saw her silhouette as he figured she was reprimanding her team, but chose not to linger, “Goodnight, Tanak.”


	4. After Victory, Tighten Your Helmet Strap

             There were few things that made her sensei retreat inside herself, and she had finally found another one. Any mention of her parents or her “home” made Tanak sink into isolation where she would stop talking and probably eat candied chestnuts by the dozens. The second one as she sat back on her legs at the living room table was anything involving Hatake Kakashi, which had reduced her to an ill temperament while she sipped on scalding hot tea with no regard for the temperature. But Lyoko was keen on minding her own business as she poured herself a cup of green tea.

                As Taika handed her a bowl of miso soup while walking out of the kitchen, she glanced over at Tauro who was staring at their sensei. She whistled lowly for his attention, glaring at him to keep him from asking her anything. It was just better to let her stew in her own thoughts. Careful not to slurp as she ate, Lyoko tensed up as Tanak set her teacup down and sighed.

                “The chūnin exam starts today.” Tanak folded her hands together and rested her elbows on the table, “You are to report to Room 301 at the Academy at four this evening.”

                “Any advice on getting through it?” Tauro quipped, crossing his arms over his chest.

                “Don’t die.” A tiny smirk cracked Tanak’s façade, “For the first half, you’re going to need to rely on each other.”

                Lyoko nodded her head, ignoring the glare Tauro cast her way, “Tanak-sensei, when did you become a chūnin?”

                “I was seven.” She poured herself a second cup of tea, “But times were different then.”

                “What do you mean?” Taika squeaked.

                “We were at war.” Tanak turned to the window, staring at the light illuminating the blue curtains, “Konoha needed more shinobi in the field. And the Academy was preparing us for battle should our enemies break through our defenses and enter the village.”

                “That must have been difficult to grow up with…” Taika muttered.

                “It certainly gives you a different perspective on things.” Tanak turned her gaze to Lyoko, “I’m curious why you asked.”

                Lyoko shrugged, “It just explains a thing or two about you.” She could tell by the disapproving gleam in her sensei’s eyes that she didn’t appreciate the ambiguity in her response. But Lyoko wasn’t concerned with that as she sipped on her lukewarm tea.

                “Explains what about me?” Tanak snapped.

                “It explains your dissatisfaction for not being used in a more effective manner as a shinobi.” Lyoko knew she had hit a chord close to Tanak’s heart, earning worried glances from her teammates as she continued drinking her tea.

                “You’re perceptive, Lyoko.” Tanak stood up, “But don’t start assuming. That might get you killed.”

                Choosing to take that as a threat, Lyoko dismissed herself to the small bedroom she was sharing with her team. She shut the door, unraveling the knot in her robe to let it pool on the floor as she walked. Her feet felt weightless on the _tatami_ floor, the sun illuminating the painted _fusuma_ until the colors of the autumn leaves falling from trees speckled the floor. Tiptoeing over to her belongings, she shuffled through her large backpack until she found a purple kimono.

                 Her mother sewed all of hers by hand, gifting them on various occasions or just when she thought her daughter needed a new color. If Lyoko could have, she would have brought all of them, but there wasn’t much time for evening strolls around the village. One arm sliding into a sleeve, then the other, she tucked the cloth tightly around her waist before fastening a thick pastel orange obi around it. The _furisode_ sleeves fell off her shoulders to reveal a glimpse of the armored bodysuit she wore underneath.

                She had learned plenty of things under Tanak’s tutelage. From the fundaments of survival to various ninjutsu techniques to the strategies of gathering information. But her favorite lesson was understanding how to use a disadvantage to the eyes of men as her greatest asset – her gender. It started as a refined flirtation, with batted eyed glances, blush tinted cheeks, and innocent half smiles, a kind of combat from a distance. It was the close quarter’s interactions that Tanak had only given her subtle details about, the way to lure men with her lotus flower perfume, to stand close enough that the slightest twitch brushed their bodies against each other, to leaning in to offer her lips as a sacrament to impulsive emotions.

                She liked being considered beautiful, accenting her budding feminine frame in complimentary colors that made up for the darkness in her eyes and her greyish purple hair. She wore them tight enough to give the impression she had more curves, earnestly waiting for when she would grow more womanly. She exposed a bit of her neckline where her collarbones were pronounced, letting her pale skin shimmer with the oils she bathed in. She liked when men would try to get a glimpse of her face beneath her parasol, craning their necks as she walked past. Tanak had made her vainer, but at least she felt like she had something in common with her sensei.

                “Lyoko! Are you done yet?!”

                Even she couldn’t suppress a smile while she picked up her oilpaper parasol, pulling out the laitō blade to assure it came out smoothly, “Yes, I’m done, Taika.”

                Taika burst in, nearly tripping as she ran to her bags and started collecting scrolls and various small weapons, “We should leave soon! I don’t want to be the last ones to show up.”

                “We have plenty of time.” Tauro sauntered into the room, stretching his arms above his head so his shirt lifted up over his abdomen. He caught Lyoko staring, but she walked past him while jamming the hilt of her laitō into his stomach. He doubled over while trying to laugh through the pain, “Caught ya looking, Lyoko.”

                “You don’t have much to offer, Tauro,” Lyoko muttered.

                “Let me take you on a date sometime and I’ll change your mind.”

                Lyoko stopped by the door, turning around to coyly smile at him, “What would you have in mind?”

                Tauro stepped closer to lean his arm against the wall so he was peering over her, “Maybe I could teach you the rest of Tanak-sensei’s techniques?”

                Keeping her temper at bay, she gently brushed her fingertips along his jaw while standing up on her toes. Lips inches from his, she reached her hand to tangle in his thick strawberry blonde tresses, “What would _you_ know about the art of sex?” Yanking him by her hold in his hair as hard she could, she sent him sprawling across the floor. Crouching over him, she held her laitō blade across his neck, “Don’t pretend like Tanak-sensei has taught you _anything_ about seduction.”

                “I _dare_ you to teach me then.” Tauro tried to move his arms, but she pushed the edge of her blade further against his throat, “I wouldn’t mind being the one you work on techniques with.”

                Lyoko rolled her eyes in the dramatic fashion her sensei always did, “You’re not my type.”

                Climbing off him and walking out of the room, she spun her blade around her fingers before sheathing it. Sliding the door shut behind her, she leaned her back against the wall and tried to ease the fire consuming her skin. She was hot and a little sweaty, in places she wasn’t sure should feel that way. Pulling her arms out of the sleeves of her kimono, she fanned herself with her hand only to hear her sensei’s chuckling from around the corner.

                “You look a bit uncomfortable, Lyoko-chan.”

                She grinned as Tanak offered her a fan. Flicking it open, she admired the oilpaper image of lotus flowers on a river before using it to cool herself, “We never completed my training on how to calm my desires.”

                “I’ll tell you the secret behind it.” Tanak gestured for her to come closer, cupping her hand around her ear to whisper, “You have to remind yourself it’s _all_ an act. That you have no emotion towards that individual.”

                Lyoko’s brow furrowed, “That sounds…difficult.”

                “But most effective.” Tanak started walking towards her bedroom, “That’s the mental sabotage involved. Trust me that some men will break knowing it meant nothing.”

                “So that’s what you did to Kakashi-sama.” Lyoko flinched as Tanak stopped, holding her arms outstretched between the opening to her bedroom. She wasn’t sure why she said it, but she couldn’t help being bothered by the untold story between her sensei and Hatake Kakashi. She just hadn’t spoken up yet, though was starting to regret having done so. She’d never seen Tanak lose her temper, bracing herself for that moment.

                “It would seem that way, wouldn’t it?” Lyoko swore she heard Tanak sniffle, “Actually, Lyoko, it was never an act with him.”

                Watching her sensei disappear, Lyoko tried to subdue her guilty conscious for assuming Tanak had never been sincere with anyone emotionally. She tucked the fan she was given into her obi sash and slid her arms back into her sleeves while her teammates finally wandered out of their room, fully equipped for their exam. When they walked outside, she opened her parasol and blocked the sun from burning her skin.

                “You look paler than usual, Lyoko,” Tauro sneered.

                “It’s because I’m wearing purple,” she snapped.

                Taika raced up between them, linking her arms with theirs, “Remember what Tanak-sensei said? We’re gonna _need_ to rely on each other for this exam!” When her teammates didn’t respond, Taika dragged her heels and pulled them to a stop, “Come on, you two! We need to get along!”

                Lyoko yanked her arm away, “You worry too much, Taika. Our teamwork is great on missions.”

                “But you and Tauro always fight.”

                Tauro shrugged, “It’s harmless. We just get on each other’s nerves sometimes.”

                “Well, can you not do that in front of everyone else?” Taika pulled them along with her as she started walking, “I don’t want people to target us because they think we don’t get along.”

                “Maybe that’s what we should make them think?” Tauro ran his fingers through his hair, offering a wink to a couple passing girls, “So they try coming after us.”

                “That could draw the attention of too many teams. We don’t want to be at a _complete_ disadvantage,” Lyoko added while nudging Tauro to keep him focused.

                “Where do you think we rank amongst the teams?” Taika muttered.

                Lyoko didn’t answer, watching as several other genin pushed their way inside the Academy doors. She was too far away to determine the village from their headbands, so she resigned herself to noticing particular physical characteristics. Leading her teammates inside, they climbed up to the third floor to find an empty hallway where Room 301 was on their left.

                “How should we make our entrance?” Tauro cracked his knuckles, “I wouldn’t mind a brawl with a fellow Amegakure team to show them who’s superior.”

                “What happened to _not_ drawing attention?” Lyoko hissed.

                “A few theatrics would spice up the wait!”

                Strolling into the classroom while shutting her parasol, she stopped immediately as everyone turned their attention to her, Taika, and Tauro. She hadn’t realized just how many teams had shown up. The room was crowded, genin seated on tables, crouched in the corners, and leaning against the walls. She felt Tauro’s hand on her shoulder, lingering to caress her soft skin as he leaned to whisper in her ear.

                “You look _petrified_ , Lyoko.”

                “They’re all _staring_ at us,” she muttered through grinding teeth.

                “For a girl as pretty as yourself, you don’t know how to handle attention,” he chided.

                Tauro stretched his arms up to the ceiling, flexing his biceps revealed by the tight, sleeveless tunic he wore. With most of the room still watching him, he smiled from ear to ear, “I know she’s beautiful, but you don’t have to stare!”

                Lyoko’s hands clenched into fists and she was tempted to pummel him right there. Grabbing him by the arm, she dragged him off to the other side of the room and shoved him into the wall, “You just don’t know when to shut up!”

                “I thought you liked making an entrance?” He grinned as she tried to get a hold of his shirt to shake him, but the material was too tight for her to grasp. Her fingers fumbled over his chest much to his amusement, “I could help you take it off…”

                Her hand hit his cheek so fast he was sent into the floor. Taika immediately grabbed her arm to keep her from striking him again. Her lips were taut and her eyes were wide enough to swallow her forehead, but Tauro was still laughing. She yanked herself away from Taika and leaned against the wall with her arms crossed over her chest. Calming down, she noticed a few different genin teams watching them and turning around to whisper to themselves. And it donned on her what he had done.

                “You wanted to make me angry, didn’t you?” she muttered.

                Tauro grinned while straightening himself up, “The weaker ones will try to take advantage of us early…”

                “You’re supposing the weaker ones will make it past the first exam.”

                Lyoko pulled the fan her sensei had given her from her sash, absentmindedly staring at the lotus flowers painted on it. The commotion from the front of the room brought her head up and she scanned through the gossiping teams to catch a glimpse of Konohagakure’s Team 7 standing at the door. She went to resume inspecting her fan until she heard someone shout.

                “My name is Uzumaki Naruto! And I won’t lose to you bastards! You got that?!”

                Lyoko’s eyes were wide and she tried to decide if she thought it was funny or not. That blonde haired kid was obnoxious, but even she couldn’t avoid smiling a little. Shaking her head, she glanced at her teammates to find Tauro grinning while sizing Naruto up and Taika looking around to try to find who was shouting.

                “What do you think about those guys?” Tauro said, pointing his chin in Team 7’s direction.

                Taika stood up on her toes, trying to peer over the shoulders of the genin sitting in front of them to better see who had walked in, “We probably shouldn’t underestimate them…”

                “That Uzumaki kid has a loud mouth.” Lyoko closed her fan with a quiet snap, “I’d like to see what he’s made of.”

                “I can start a fight if you want?” Tauro cracked his knuckles, “Been itching to punch something.”

                Taika pointed at the Otogakure team, “I think they’re beating you to it.”

                Lyoko leaned off the wall as three genin with music notes on their headbands vaulted forward towards the front of the room. She watched eagerly as they attacked the young man with glasses standing by Team 7. Eyes wide as he dodged the initial swing, the boy with the glasses soon doubled over and vomited. She covered her mouth and turned away before she lost her breakfast onto the floor.

                “What the hell just happened?” Tauro muttered.

                Lyoko fanned herself and took several deep breaths, “I caught a glimpse of the mechanism on his arm. But I don’t have the slightest idea what it did.”

                Her wave of nausea receding, she stood up taller and glanced around the room at the feel of someone’s eyes on her. Face turning scarlet, she caught a Sunagakure boy staring at her. His green eyes held a coldness that sucked the warmth from her skin. There was a misunderstanding there, a sadness beneath his daggered glare. But she was unsure of what he wanted her to do or say as he stared at her.

                “Quiet down, you worthless bastards!”

                Tearing her eyes away, she peered through the rising smoke from the front of the room to see at least twenty shinobi standing there, each of them wearing Konohagakure headbands. She felt a shiver trickle down her spine as the broad shouldered man at the front of them introduced himself.

                “My name is Morino Ibiki, and I’m the proctor for the first exam.”

. . . .

                Staring up at Hokage Rock, she popped a candied chestnut into her mouth, sucking on it for a few seconds before gnashing it between her back teeth. She expected to feel guiltier beneath their stone gazes, but it almost justified a few things. Leaving Konoha meant she couldn’t hurt anyone in the village with her decisions, couldn’t stain the ANBU force’s reputation, couldn’t compromise her missions because of her emotions. With another candied chestnut rolling around her tongue, she offered a salute to the mountain face before turning on her heel.

                She strolled down the street, catching several people watching her as she went. Knowing better than to think they were simply admiring her face, she chose to give them nothing more than a nod of her head while making her way toward the academy. The building looked no different as she walked past, catching a glimpse inside the classroom windows where children sat listening to their teacher. She continued along toward the training grounds where she fondly remembered meeting her team for the first time.

                Gekkō Hayate and Morino Ibiki… She mused on how often she and Ibiki would go at it when he’d tease her about being a girl and therefore weak. He never meant it maliciously as she came to find out, he just thought it was funny when her temper would fly. Hayate would try to intervene, often catching one of Tanak’s errant punches, which made her apologize over and over because she _always_ meant to hit Ibiki.

                A sad smile crossed her lips as she began to wonder what they would say if they saw her again. She didn’t expect any cheerful greetings, maybe just a scolding from Ibiki while Hayate watched. Finding them could be more difficult with the chūnin exam going on, but she figured she could ask around. Maybe they would have some advice about how to deal with all her returning emotions with being back in Konoha? She didn’t think of Konoha as home, but everything was coming back slowly, the sights and sounds she would have traded for where she had resigned herself to in Amegakure.

Walking along the open expanse of grass and trees, she saw Konoha’s Memorial Stone. As she walked up to it, the names carved becoming readable, she wondered that if she had died, would Konoha have put her name there? Or would they have held against her that she wasn’t born in that village. Dropping to her knees, she closed her eyes and folded her hands on her lap, praying.

She saw it as clear as it was years ago. Team Minato returning from their mission in Sunagakure, bearing news of a successful mission overshadowed by Uchiha Obito’s death. She didn’t know the right way to comfort Kakashi, always knowing him to be stoic and dispassionate, but he had come back different. They all mourned the loss of a comrade and friend, and she wanted to blame Obito for softening Kakashi. Kakashi had become more protective, compassionate in his own quiet way.

_‘You did something to change him, Obito-kun. I’m sorry I never appreciated it until now.’_

“This is the last place I expected to find you.”

Opening her eyes, she glanced over her shoulder where Kakashi stood with his hands in his pockets, “It’s peaceful here. My mind needed to be at ease.”

“Worried about your genin?” He waited for an indication of an answer, but she just slowly rose to her feet, “Or has Konoha brought back too many memories?”

“The former,” she assured him. She grinned as he stood there, drinking in the sight of her, trying to find the subtle differences about her.

There was a tiny curl at the end of her long hair that he had just noticed, a flicker in her eyes that turned them blue then green depending on how she tilted her chin. Her skin held a pallor he wasn’t familiar with, glinting under the sun that used to leave her tanned. She wore a darker stain on her lips, crimson rather than rose. Her lack of modesty was nothing surprising to him, but he found himself much more appreciative of her curvy hips and muscular legs beneath skin tight pants, the hourglass outline of her abs that she showed off below her cropped mesh shirt. But she was vainer than she had been in the past, forgoing innocent, flirtatious gestures for boldly stomping around to draw men into her arms.

“I hardly believed it was you yesterday.” He moved past her and stared at the Memorial Stone, “Who’d have thought seven years would have made so much of a difference?”

Tanak nudged him with her shoulder playfully, “Well, it didn’t change _too much_ of how I look.”

“Not from a distance at least.” Everything in his body ached to touch her cheek, to see if her skin was still soft, “I’m working on figuring you out.”

“You’re gonna be at that for a while.” She gave him a sidelong glance, “Your sharingan won’t be very helpful analyzing me.”

He laughed, “I’ll need to take a more physical approa-” He caught himself too late, glancing at Tanak who was snickering, “What I meant is-”

“We were never very good at talking anyway.” She brushed off the top of the Memorial Stone where a few flower petals had fallen, “I’d usually let my temper get the better of me and we’d start arguing…”

“I wasn’t any good at conveying how I felt.” He sighed, “And that just made things worse.”

Tanak giggled, turning on her heel to leave. She had no interest in hashing out the details of their relationship, at least not yet. She didn’t want to be that vulnerable again, “I can hardly believe you’ve gotten this sentimental since I left!”

Kakashi shook his head, aggravated by the singsong tone in her voice, “You’ve gotten callous.”

“I thought you’d like me better this way.” She glanced over her shoulder, “Not that I don’t _love_ our conversations, but I’m not in the mood to dwell on the past.”

He strolled up beside her, “Why don’t you join me and the other Konoha jōnin for lunch?”

“That doesn’t seem like a good idea. I didn’t exactly leave Konoha on good terms.”

“Then you should probably start making up for that.”

Looking up at him, she saw his easygoing smile. A blush rising in her cheeks, she rolled her eyes to regain her composure, “Fine. But you’re paying.”

“As usual.”

She smiled, hiding it beneath the collar of her _hanten_ that broke away from her body with each sweep of the wind. Walking alongside him in the silence was refreshing, and she wished she had more memories of just that simple thing. But when Kakashi came to her mind, it was heated arguments and aggressive sex that sated a whirlwind of feelings that they couldn’t communicate to one another. She wanted to blame it on being young, but she knew the secrets she kept from him were what ruined everything.

Making their way back into town, she noticed more people pointing and staring at them as they passed. She grinned, nudging Kakashi, “Blast from the past, huh?”

“You’ve always loved attention.” He grinned while she linked her arm with his, much like she used to when they were younger, “Though I think they’re just wondering what I’m doing with an Amegakure kunoichi.”

“I think people still remember seeing you with a beautiful woman like myself!” She winked at him, “If you didn’t enjoy _some_ of it then you wouldn’t have stuck around.”

He pulled his arm from hers, “There must have been nothing you enjoyed since you’re the one who left.” She opened her mouth to reply, but realized that he had stopped in front of a small café where two familiar faces were sitting. She still hated when he got the last word. Glancing at the two jōnin already seated, she waved a “hello” while Kakashi kept talking, “Asuma, Kurenai, I’m sure you remember Tanak.”

“Explains why you’re _late_...” Asuma pointed at them, noticing how close they stood together, “You two back together, or something?”

Tanak and Kakashi looked at each other, then away, both blushing until Tanak spoke up, “Um… _no_. We’re just catching up.”

Tanak sat across from Kurenai and gestured for a waitress to take her order, but Kakashi interrupted her, “She’ll have one of your _oshizushi_ specials.” She gave him a glare, trying to brush off how well he still knew her. He smiled mockingly, “I figured since I’m paying.”

“ _Sure_ you two aren’t getting back together,” Asuma sneered.

“I suppose Kakashi is just improving inter-village relationships with his gesture,” Tanak drawled.

She stuck her tongue out at him while he smugly grinned beneath his mask. She wanted to wipe that smirk clean off his lips, but she was caught between punching him and kissing him. There was something about him that just irked her, burrowed underneath her skin until all she could think about was him. It flushed her cheeks and knotted her insides, leaving desire to consume her every thought while she contemplated how to get him alone.

“So you must have a team here for the chūnin exam,” Kurenai said to dissipate the tension.

Tanak smiled in reply, unaware that her face had turned a slight pink shade. Thanking the waitress as she set her sushi in front of her, she added, “Yes. They are the pride of Amegakure’s clans.”

“I got lucky with my team.” Asuma blew out a puff of smoke from his cigarette, “They come from a long line of clans that have fought together.”

“Ino-Shika-Chō?” Kurenai lifted a brow at Tanak’s answer, but she waved her off while swallowing her sushi, “I’m familiar with clan histories. Or have you forgotten I used to live here?”

“You also left.” Asuma glanced at Kakashi, who seemed less than eager to get involved in that conversation, “The Sandaime Hokage was _lenient_ in dealing with your desertion.”

Tanak’s eyes glinted in amusement while she laughed off his implied accusation, “I had some soul searching to do.”

“You’re lucky Kakashi-”

“Drop it, Asuma.” Kakashi didn’t want her to know any detail of his begging the Sandaime to not kill her, and how he had done that on more than one occasion once he had failed to locate her. He knew Hiruzen could only keep her out of the Bingo Books for so long before his position of leadership in Konoha was questioned, “We didn’t come here to hash out the details of Tanak’s disappearance.” Despite that he wanted nothing more than to get her to explain it all to him.

“I’m sure we’re all worried about our teams,” Kurenai mused, hoping the change of topics would lessen the hostility.

“The only one I sometimes worry about is Naruto,” Kakashi replied.

Asuma shook his head, “I’m worried about all of them…”

Tanak drummed her fingers on the table, “One of my genin is prone to anxiety attacks. You can only imagine how that interferes with a mission.”

“I suppose we can only hope that our ‘weakest’ one is inspired by their teammates to fight harder,” Kurenai mused.

“I think that depends on who proctors the first exam,” Kakashi muttered.

Tanak’s brow furrowed as she finished swallowing a piece of sushi, “Meaning…?”

Asuma dragged out the puff he took from his cigarette, “Morino Ibiki is the proctor for the first exam.”

She was unable to control the impulse as she burst out laughing at the thought of how frightening Ibiki could be, “Ibiki is the proctor! Those kids are _in_ for it!”

“Who is Ibiki…?” Kurenai muttered.

“We were teammates. Used to always let him rile me up!” Tanak was grinning ear to ear, “Kinda miss the bastard…”

Kakashi shook his head, “Ibiki is a sadist. A special jōnin in the interrogation corps. I’ll be surprised if that many teams get past him.”

“Only the best will survive.” Asuma gestured for the waitress to bring his check, “You’ve got to realistically decide who on your team will actually get promoted.”

Tanak mused on that, confident that only Lyoko had the maturity to advance her rank, “If anything this exam will teach these genin a little about the _real_ path of a shinobi.”

“I’m not sure Ibiki is the best one to introduce them to the ‘real world’.” Kakashi crossed his arms over his chest while leaning back in his seat, “He’s got experiences that the rest of us have nightmares of.”

Asuma stood with Kurenai, “Everyone’s got a little darkness in their past that they can pass onto the younger generation.” He saluted Tanak and Kakashi, “Catch up with you two later.”

Tanak waited until they were out of earshot before whispering, “They are definitely sleeping together.”

“Kinda obvious, isn’t it?” Kakashi mused.

She stared down at her sushi, pushing the last couple pieces around with her chopsticks. Sitting close, silence between them, she began to wonder if she should tell him about everything that happened when she left? Or maybe just start by telling him _why_ she left? When she glanced over at him, she felt a familiar heat rise in her cheeks and desire stir between her legs. She couldn’t resist the mischievous grin that slid across her lips as she leaned over to him and rested her hand against his cheek.

Kakashi tensed at her touch, expression softening as he met those pretty eyes of hers. He wanted nothing more than to be able to trust her, but even the ache of wanting to feel the skin of her palm against his cheek couldn’t convince him. _She left Konoha. She left you. What makes you think anything she’s said up to this point is the truth?_

Tanak giggled, lifting up a piece of sushi between them while gently tugging at his mask, “Open up, Handsome.”

His vision reeled, overwhelmed by the need to kiss her as he watched each word form on her red lips. But he quickly pushed her hand away as he felt his mask slipping below his nose, “I’m not going to play your game, Tanak.”

She gave him her typical pout, bottom lip sticking out and hiding her gaze beneath batted eyelashes, “I don’t know _what_ you’re talking about-”

“Years ago I would’ve fallen for your hollow flirtations.” He beckoned the waitress for the check, “But I’ve learned that _everything_ with you is lies and secrets.”

“I thought men prefer when there aren’t any strings attached…” she muttered.

Kakashi shook his head, “I’m not another one of your missions, Tanak.”

“Maybe I’m trying to figure things out?” She tossed her chopsticks on the table, “Being with you again- I just can’t…it’s one of the hardest…” Floundering for words, she laughed grimly while glancing over her shoulder.

“Say that I did feel that way for you again.” He waited for her reaction, disheartened by her grin returning, though he could see something else fighting behind her eyes. Tears were trying to force their way down her cheeks, but she laughed through it as she always did. His heart sank in his chest, “Never mind.”

“What do you want from me?” She stood up from the table, nearly knocking her chair over, “Have you figured it out yet that I’m permanently _fucked_ from the missions Konoha assigned me!”

“You act like you’re the only one who suffered from the war.”

Her hands clenched into fists, “I may not have gotten _both_ my teammates killed, but I’ve dealt with _plenty_ on my own!”

How quickly he stood up, his chair clattering to the floor, caused her to flinch. But he just turned to the owner of the café who had stopped working on orders to glower at them, “I’m sorry for the disturbance.”

“Take your marital argument somewhere else!” the owner scoffed.

Tanak’s eyes widened, the left one twitching slightly as she glared at the man behind the counter. Her face beamed scarlet while Kakashi turned to set aside money for the check he had been brought, knowing full well that he was embarrassed too, “ _Marital_ argument? The hell makes you think _he_ can land a woman with an _ass_ like mine?”

Kakashi nearly tripped into the table when those words flew out of her loud mouth. He grabbed her arm to drag her off, quietly laughing to himself that her temper was still kind of cute. As she stumbled past the table, she scooped up what he meant to leave as a tip.

“That’s not very polite-”

“Like hell you should leave a tip with that kind of service.” She jingled the few yens he had left behind in her hand, but when he made to grab them she twirled around out of his reach, “You want it, then come and get it.”

Kakashi sighed, irritated and exhausted from dealing with her, “What do _you_ want, Tanak?”

She stared at the coins in her hand shuffling them around with her fingers. Smiling faintly, she flipped one of the yen into the air and caught it, “I suppose that’s the only question that matters.” Turning her gaze to the sky, she tried to keep the oncoming tears behind her eyes. It was getting worse, her emotions resurfacing while her mistakes tore at her clothes until she was laid bare in front of him, “I don’t know.” Walking closer to him, she took his hand and pressed the coins into his palm, “I thought I’d be done running away, but that’s just easier for me right now.”

                Instinctively grabbing her wrist as she turned to walk away, the words didn’t come easy unlike the day she left. Maybe he had just said too much back then, saving nothing for when he saw her again, “When you’re done running, I’ll be here.”

                Tanak smiled, one tear escaping down her cheek. There was a tiny flutter in her chest that made her laugh, but not in that fake, ugly way she practiced, in a genuine giddiness that a young girl had when her crush finally noticed her, “You’ll be _here_?” She pulled her arm away and spun around in a circle, “Right in the middle of this road?”

                “If it means you’ll came back.” Kakashi jammed his hands in his pockets, “Just don’t take so long this time.”

                “Thank you.”

She waved her fingers in a goodbye while turning to head down the street. Kakashi smiled to himself, watching that sexy swing of her hips as she disappeared down the road. While he did hate the idea of her leaving, he couldn’t complain about the view. Rocking back on his heels, he was nearly shoved over into the ground as a hand slapped his back.

                “Having trouble with the ladies, Kakashi?”

                He cringed at Gai’s boisterous voice ringing in his ears. Tuning out whatever rant he had come up with, Kakashi began to wonder how far along his genin were in their first exam.

. . . .

                She had already gotten over her initial panic attack when Morino Ibiki announced the first exam was a written test, but with only fifteen minutes remaining before the final question, she could feel her chest tighten, her breathing quickening, her skin blanching, her vision blurring. Wrapping her arms around herself in a hug, she rocked back and forth a couple times while closing her eyes. She’d never make it past this exam if she couldn’t refocus, and she probably looked like a fool in front of her teammates!

                Eyes snapping open, she could hear the kunai being thrown before it landed in the table she sat at. Worried that she had somehow been considered cheating, she breathed a sigh of relief when the proctors told the boy to her left to leave with his team. She took the moment to glance around the room, hoping the commotion would give her time to locate Tauro, who could give her an encouraging glance. But she found a pair of unfamiliar eyes looking at her.

                He had shiny black hair and thick eyebrows, his dazed stare turning her cheeks pink. Shyly smiling at the boy, which made him blush, she heard the sound of a proctor’s pencil scratching on his paper. Figuring she just got in trouble for “cheating”, she resumed staring at her test where she had doodled in the corners, suddenly calmed by that small interaction. Glancing up, she noticed something reflected on one of the mirrors above her. She could clearly read the answers on the test to her right, but she didn’t know who was moving it.

                Untying her headband from around her waist, she secured it around her forehead while looking up to memorize as many answers as she could. As she scribbled them onto her paper, she felt comforted knowing she wouldn’t completely fail her teammates by not answering any of them. She figured Lyoko had breezed through the exam being the “genius” she was, and Tauro was using his genjutsu somehow. Not being as smart as them didn’t bother her very often, because she had other ways to prove herself.

                Taika resigned herself to the five questions she had answered, resuming doodling on her page while glancing around the room. Watching as team after team was eliminated, she began praying that her constant observation wasn’t considered cheating. Head bowed in fear that she’d be the next one dragged from her chair, she felt a wave of nausea wash over her. She squinted her eyes shut while trying to keep her lunch in her stomach. Eventually she’d get over her anxiety attacks and nervous breakdowns or else she’d never make it past the genin rank!

                “We will now start the tenth question.”

                Taika shook her bangs out of her face, lifting her head to watch as Morino Ibiki paced around the front of the room.

                “But first, I’ll explain the rules of desperation.” Ibiki squared his shoulders to them, his eyes darkening, “For the tenth question, you must decide if you will take it or not.”

                A Sunagakure kunoichi’s voice rose above the chatter that erupted in the room, “Choose?! What happens if we choose not to?!”

                “If you choose not to answer it, your points will be reduced to zero and you fail along with your teammates!”

                Taika tasted bile as she scolded herself for considering in that split second to not try answering the question. She could feel Lyoko’s eyes searing the back of her neck as she glanced over her shoulder to see her teammate high above her. Her throat ran dry and she licked her lips while several other genin argued that they would answer the question, to get it on with.

                But Ibiki smirked, “And now for the other rule.” He waited until they were all silent before continuing, “If you choose to take the tenth question and answer it incorrectly, then you will never be able to take the chūnin exam again!”

                Her eyes widened, her spine rigid until she almost fell out of her chair. Shaking her head, auburn hair tickling the ridge of her nose, she tried to assure herself that she could pass this. Her teammates would need her if they expected to make it through the second exam, and she’d fail them both if she chose not to answer it! She covered her ears with her hands for a moment to block out the angry protesting until she had returned her breathing to normal.

                “But I am giving you an out.” Ibiki stared them down, hands tucked deep in his pockets, “Those of you that aren’t confident in answering it can choose not to and try again next year.”

                That did it. She teetered in her seat, eyes rolling back as she hit the floor with a thud.

                Lyoko drummed her fingers on the table, a look of annoyance on her face as Tauro jumped out of his seat, rushing to Taika’s side and trying to fan her blanched face with his hand. She laughed under her breath as he cradled her in his arms, “She’ll come to in a few minutes.”

                “So that’s normal?”

                Lyoko glared at the boy a few seats down to her left. He had featureless white eyes and long black hair held back with his Konoha ninja band, smirking against his fingers with his elbows propped on the table. She gave him a once over with her eyes, “What’s it to you?”

                “Disrupting the exam with such an antic.” He leveled his gaze on her with a sideways glance, “Though what good it would do you.”

                “I happen to enjoy a bit of theatrics.” She winked at him, figuring it was pointless by then for her team to stop drawing attention to themselves, “Dissipates the tension.”

                Taika opened her eyes, taking in a noisy, deep breath while sitting upright with a jolt. She waved at Lyoko with a big smile on her face, “Don’t worry! I feel much better now.” She thanked Tauro and clambered back into her seat to see the Ibiki glaring at her impatiently, but somewhere in his eyes she saw amusement glinting.

                “Those that don’t want to take it, raise your hands. Once your number has been confirmed, you may leave.”

                Lyoko ignored the several genin that vacated seats next to and around her. Catching that same boy observing her, she lifted her chin up a little higher to give him the impression she was looking down at him while rolling her shoulder back so that the sleeves of her kimono slipped further down her arms. To see the grin that stretched across his lips made her skin tingle with heat, rushing up her neck then her cheeks. Turning away, she scolded herself for failing to keep her composure, his chuckling stinging her ears. Tanak-sensei would have scolded her and muttered that maybe she was too young to master her techniques.

                Skin prickling, she felt the burn of someone’s eyes on the back of her neck. With a glance over her shoulder she saw that same Sunagakure genin from earlier watching her with his black rimmed eyes. Her haughty air was swept away, and she began feeling as vulnerable as any thirteen year old kunoichi might in a room with so many strong male genin. She wanted to offer him a kind gesture, a smile or wave, but was too transfixed by him to move.

                Her attention was turned to the front of the room as that obnoxiously loud kid from Team 7 slammed his hand on his desk and shouted, “Don’t underestimate me! Even if I remain a genin my whole life, I’m going to be Hokage anyway! I’m not afraid!”

                The tiniest grin crept across Lyoko’s face as she glanced at both of her teammates: Taika smiling with bright white teeth and Tauro leaning back in his chair with his arms cross over his chest. She was itching to finish this exam and test her mettle against any one of the teams in the room.

                Ibiki chuckled, “Good decision….So to everyone still remaining...” A toothy smile eclipsed his scarred face, “I congratulate you on passing the first exam!”

                Taika leapt out of her seat, punching the air with both her fists, “I knew we’d do it!”

                “You were the one contemplating not answering the tenth question, so sit your giddy ass back down,” Lyoko retorted.

                “Wait…What about the tenth question?” Sakura asked.

                Ibiki laughed, “There isn’t one. Or you could say that those two options were the tenth question.”

                “Then what the hell were the first nine questions for?!” The Sunagakure kunoichi shouted, nearly launching herself over the table, “They were pointless!”

                “They weren’t pointless.” Ibiki rolled his eyes, “They were to test your ability to gather information. The questions on this exam are beyond the average genin intelligence, so you needed to cheat.” He pointed to several nin sitting in the room, “And we provided you with chūnin cheating targets who had all the right answers.”

                Taika blushed, realizing one chūnin was sitting on her right, “Well…this is awkward…”

                The chūnin chuckled, “You’re going to want to get control of your anxiety. Could be costly in a mission.”

                Ibiki started untying his ninja band, “Those that cheat poorly fail. And sometimes information is more important than your life.” The entire room gasped to see his disfigured head, deep holes, burn marks, and scars that stretched across his skull, “On missions and on the battlefield, people risk their lives to acquire information.”

                Taika grimaced, feeling nausea climb up her esophagus until Ibiki covered his head again with his ninja band, “I really need to work on that…”

                “So about that last question.” Tauro kicked his feet up on the table, leaning on the last two legs of his chair, “That seemed to weigh a lot more than any of these other ones.”

                Ibiki studied him for a moment, looking for a ninja band to signify where he was from, “The decision to ‘take it’ or ‘not take it’ were difficult choices. You will be assigned missions that are dangerous. You might be worrying about dying or putting your teammates in jeopardy, but these are all unavoidable! Those that hope for a second chance don’t deserve to become chūnin!”

                Taika tumbled out of her chair as the window to her left shattered and a black shroud flew into the room. Tauro tipped backwards too far, tumbling legs over his head much to the amusement of the girls near him. Lyoko smacked her forehead, embarrassed by both her teammates especially when the Konoha boy caught her glance and laughed. She’d shut him up later if she got the chance.

                “There’s no time to celebrate!” A woman unraveled herself from the banner she had pinned to the ceiling, “I am the examiner for the second test! Mitarashi Anko! Now let’s go!”

                Tauro peered overtop the table, blushing when the next examiner gave him an inquisitive glance, “I think I’ve had enough excitement for one day…”

                “Ibiki! You passed 26 teams?!” Anko set her hands on her hips, “You’ve gotten soft!”

                Ibiki grinned, “We’ve got a strong group this time.”

                “Whatever.” She waved her hand dismissively, “I’ll cut them in half in the second exam.”

                Anko started walking out of the room, the genin hurrying out of their seats to find their teammates before following.

                Swinging her backpack over her shoulder, Taika linked her arms with Lyoko and Tauro’s as she found them waiting at the door. Dragging them along until they were outside, she wrinkled her nose as Lyoko pulled away to open her parasol. The sunlight glinted off the oilpaper canvas, littering the ground with specks of purple and pink that Taika tried to step on as she walked.

                “Excuse me!”

                Unsure who the voice was indicating, Taika looked at Lyoko, who just rolled her eyes and kept walking. Taika stopped and turned around to find the boy who she caught staring at her waving in her direction, “Hello.”

                He ran up next to her, panting a bit as he caught his breath, “I wanted to introduce myself! I’m Lee Rock.”

                “It’s nice to meet you.” Taika offered her hand, “I’m Miyata Taika.”

                He brought her hand to his lips and kissed it, “That’s a really pretty name.” She giggled, face beaming red as she was unable to form words. He smiled at her which made her heart lodge in her throat, “I couldn’t help noticing you earlier-” Lee pitched forward as a girl came up behind him and smacked him upside the head.

                “Will you stop hitting on her? Now is the wrong time for that!”

                Lee kept his head bowed, “But I may never see her again…”

                “And we might just have to fight her in the next exam!”

                Tauro slid between the kunoichi and Lee, noticing that Taika was stuck, “No need for hostilities!” He sized the girl up, winking at her while she scowled, “Nothing wrong with complimenting an obvious beauty.” Stretching his arms above his head, he grinned to see her watching his biceps flex, “Speaking of which… I’m Oshiro Tauro. And your gorgeous self is…?”

                She tried to hide her blush by shaking her head, “TenTen.”

                “A whole lot of heaven!” He flashed a toothy smile, “Konoha does have the most beautiful kunoichi of any village I’ve seen.”

                TenTen wrinkled her nose, “Never short of a pick-up line, huh?”

                “I figure it could help improve inter-village relations,” Tauro hummed.

                “Are you two done fucking around?” Lyoko strolled up beside Tauro and Taika, spinning her parasol over her shoulder, “We need to be focusing on this next exam.”

                “It seems we both have wayward teammates.”

                Lyoko wet her lips as that Konoha boy sauntered up to her, glancing quickly at his teammates to draw them back into line. She felt her heart skip, but kept herself in check by looking him over with a raised brow, “That’s about all we’ve got in common.”

                “To be determined.” His eyes started at the slit in her kimono where her thighs were revealed and worked their way up her chest then neck then her face. He grinned as if he had just deciphered all her jutsus, her personal tics, her deep emotions, “Hyūga Neji.”

                “Saito Lyoko.” She bowed her head to him as a gesture of greeting, “I consider it a pleasure to meet someone from one of Konoha’s most noble clans.”

                Neji scoffed at that, “Flattery doesn’t sound natural in your voice.”

                “I still need more than a name to consider you worthy.” Lyoko gestured for her teammates to follow her as she turned on her heel, “I look forward to an opportunity to test your mettle.”

                Walking at a steady pace to catch back up with the other genin, she ignored her stomach dropping as she looked up at the towering fence that surrounded a forest labeled “Area 44”. Couldn’t have been much different than that mission Tanak had assigned them to in Takigakure. Well, the landscape was a bit more ominous and she wasn’t sure what to expect from the flora and fauna, but she hoped her extensive training in survival would pay off with constant threats surrounding her team.

                “Welcome to the second stage of the Chūnin Exam!” Anko grinned, “This is the Forty-Fourth Training Ground. Also known as ‘The Forest of Death’.”

                Lyoko cringed at the sound of someone retching, whatever came up puddling on the ground near her. She recoiled in disgust to find Taika hunched over while dispensing the contents of her lunch onto the grass. Her left eye twitched and she tried to remind herself not to let her temper get the better of her which resulted in her hissing, “Are you done causing a scene yet?!”

                Taika wiped her mouth with the back of her hand, “I feel much better now.”

                “We’re going to be targeted early because of how weak we look,” Lyoko muttered.

                “Then tell them to bring it on.” Tauro punched his fist into his hand, “We’ll finally be able to fight in this next exam.”

                “But between Taika’s anxiety attacks and your bravado, we come off as a team of idiots!”

                Tauro wrinkled his nose, “Speak for yourself…”

                Lyoko turned on Taika, “You need to get a grip on yourself.”

                “I’m trying!” Taika spat on the ground a couple times to try to rid her mouth of that nasty vomit aftertaste, “It only happened because it was a written test. I’ll be fine through the rest of this!”

                “What’s got you stressed out, Lyoko?” Tauro took a quick glance around at the remaining teams, “We usually let Taika do all the panicking for both of us.”

                Taika punched Tauro’s arm, “Hey! That’s not nice!”

                “As for you, Tauro, worry less about impressing the kunoichi here-”

                Lyoko didn’t have time to continue scolding both of them as Anko’s voice rose above the commotion, “Before we start the second exam, I need everyone to sign these agreement forms!” Murmurs followed before Anko explained herself, “There will be deaths in this one, and if I don’t have you sign these it will all be my responsibility.”

                Lyoko took one of the papers, passing them around to her teammates. Glancing at the genin around her, she tried to decide on a worthwhile target that wouldn’t get them killed. She figured a team from Konoha would be their best chance, but part of her wouldn’t have minded knocking around a fellow Amegakure team.

                “The second exam is the ultimate survival test! Each team will be given either an earth scroll or a heaven scroll. Your objective is to collect both scrolls and make it to the tower in 120 hours!”

                Tauro nudged Lyoko, sending her pen skidding of the edge of the agreement paper and ruining her signature, “Five days to cover ten kilometers? Sounds too easy.”

                “Taika could cover that in thirty minutes, but there more’s to this than reaching the tower,” Lyoko replied.

                “Just means we should attack early.” He gestured with his chin to a team behind them, “This group behind us looks scared shitless.”

                “You and Taika will need to give me time to make camp. We should try to get a couple miles behind us once this begins.”

                “Now! Let me explain what will disqualify you! First, those that don’t make it to the tower with both scrolls within the time limit. Second, those who lose a teammate or those who have a teammate killed.”

                Lyoko could hear Tanak’s voice ringing in her ears – _Don’t die_. Well, that made a lot more sense given the circumstances.

                “As a rule, there is no quitting. You will be in the forest for five days. Also, you must not look in the scroll until you make it to the tower.”

                “And what happens if you open it?” Naruto asked.

                “That’s a surprise.” Anko looked them all over before continuing, “A chūnin will be asked to handle classified information. This is to test your trustworthiness.”

                Rounding up her teammates, Lyoko headed toward the tent where teams were turning in their agreement forms in exchange for a scroll. Once behind the black curtain, she was given a white heaven scroll. She handed it to Taika, who tucked it into the shuriken pouch on her left thigh.

                “Why are you giving it to me?” Taika asked.

                “Because you’re the fastest. If we have to run for it, they won’t be able to catch you,” Lyoko replied.

                “What would happen to you and Tauro then?”

                Tauro cracked his knuckles, “We’ll take care of whoever tries to tail us.”

                It was comforting in its own strange way, and Lyoko found herself smiling as they left the tent and headed towards gate twenty two. Passing by the Otogakure nin, Lyoko twirled her parasol to cover her face as she saw them staring. There was something unnerving about the three of them, and she could only blame it on having never heard of that village before. And she considered herself well read in anything regarding the shinobi world.

                “I think we should avoid the Otogakure team,” she said once they had reached their gate.

                “Are you actually afraid?” Tauro jeered.

                Lyoko glared at him, “I’m more concerned about not getting either of you killed.”

                “You know your kimono is going to get dirty-” Tauro hunched over laughing while trying to shake off Lyoko smacking him with her parasol as she closed it.

                Taika smiled to herself, “I trust you, Lyoko.”

                Watching the chūnin standing by them unlock their gate, Lyoko grinned. While it sounded daunting that genin would die in this exam, she had faith in her teammates. They’d encountered death before thanks to Tanak, but while it seemed out of line at the time, it gave her confidence in facing some of these other teams. When she heard Anko shout that the exam had begun, she signaled for her teammates to follow her as she bolted off into the nearest tree. Sweeping above the foliage, she kept her eyes peeled for a place to make camp. Once her preparations were done, she’d devise a plan to find an earth scroll.


End file.
